Coronavirus: Over 7% of 40-year-olds get 3rd shot in two days

Over 7% of Israelis ages 40-49 had already received a coronavirus booster as of Sunday morning, two days after the Health Ministry opened the eligibility to the cohort.

Overall, some 1.38 million individuals have gotten a third shot, some three weeks after Israel launched the vaccination campaign for those over 60 who were fully inoculated at least five months earlier.

The authorities believe that thanks to the effect of the campaign Israel will be able to curb the spike in cases and serious morbidity and avoid the need for a lockdown in September.

As of Sunday, there were some 666 patients in serious conditions, with the growth appearing to be slowing down: the previous Sunday the serious patients were 535, two weeks earlier 362.

Later in the day, the coronavirus cabinet is set to meet to approve a plan for the upcoming school year.

The ministers will discuss also whether to postpone the beginning of classes. Traditionally schools in Israel start on September 1, but with the Jewish holiday period beginning on September 7 and the celebrations all falling on weekdays, many are pushing to delay the return of children to classrooms.

The outline that the ministers will discuss includes carrying out regular corona tests on students to identify new cases quickly, quarantine requirements, and remote learning for high school classes in red cities where the vaccination rate is less than 70%.